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Fine Structure of the Cuticle of Insects and Other Arthropods

  • Chapter
Insect Ultrastructure

Abstract

The integument, or outer covering of insects is composed of the cuticle, which is a multilayered extracellular composite material, and an underlying epidermis, from which the several layers of the cuticle are secreted. During the life cycle of an insect the process of formation and shedding of the cuticle occurs several times, which permits increases in body size and changes in form.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Entomology, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization, Canberra, Australia

    Barry K. Filshie

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  1. Barry K. Filshie
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ecology and Environmental Biology, Northwestern University, 60201, Evanston, Illinois, USA

    Robert C. King

  2. Sericultural Experiment Station, Yatabe, Ibaraki, Japan

    Hiromu Akai

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Filshie, B.K. (1982). Fine Structure of the Cuticle of Insects and Other Arthropods. In: King, R.C., Akai, H. (eds) Insect Ultrastructure. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-7266-4_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-7266-4_10

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